The Billionaire’s Christmas Contract by Laura Haley-McNeil

Chapter 8

Bryg drove down the country road. He didn’t like that each turn of the SUV’s wheels took him farther from the Rendell Ranch and farther from the woman who occupied his thoughts more than any woman he’d met.

Her golden eyes wavered in his mind. The hesitation in her voice echoed in his ears. His mouth flattened. What would it take to gain her trust?

She loved the ranch, and he understood why. It was a simple life she could return to whenever she needed to escape the city.

It intrigued him to see this college professor relax into the girl she would’ve been when she grew up on the ranch. He knew little about her except what he’d seen on the college website. After graduating from Braxton, she’d studied for her master’s and worked as a teaching assistant. Some pictures of her at the college’s fundraisers showed her standing next to a man Bryg learned was a prominent lawyer in the town.

The twinge rising inside Bryg gave him a start. He barely knew Leah, but knowing there was a man in her life made him wonder if that man appreciated this intelligent and gentle woman. Bryg had noticed a tan line around the ring finger of her left hand. He hadn’t read anywhere that she’d been married. Engaged? If so, why not wear her engagement ring?

Because she was no longer engaged?

Something tugged inside his chest. He wanted to be by her side, ward off anything or anyone who might hurt her. Her strength was one of the many things that drew him to her, but matters of the heart sometimes slipped through the barrier. Those pains worked their way through unguarded openings, sliced deep wounds, then disappeared, though the scars showed in moments when reminders brought memories to the surface.

The eyes always revealed more than anyone realized. Bryg spent his life studying people, getting to know them, so he probably saw more than most.

He’d seen more in Leah’s eyes than he was sure she’d intended. Looking at her had been pure pleasure, though his chest tightened when he saw those flickers of something that told a story she seemed to want to keep to herself.

His jaw set. He was here to complete a business deal, and one he’d make sure would follow the plan he’d discussed with Leah and her parents⸻the residential and commercial development would preserve Mardale’s country charm.

He had promised Leah. He’d do everything he could to keep his promise, which was why he was still in Mardale. He’d planned to delegate the development to his staff. They were competent enough, but he wasn’t ready to let go―because of Leah Rendell. He wasn’t ready to leave Mardale, and he wasn’t ready to spend even one day without seeing her. That day would come soon enough. If he were smart, he’d start preparing for that day now.

* * *

Bryg spentthe next two days telecommuting with his staff to make sure the final plan was exactly what he’d promised Leah and her parents. When he’d finalized the plans, a weight lifted off his chest. He couldn’t wait to share the drawings with Leah. He dialed the number to the Rendell Ranch.

“Hello? Bryg?” The distraction in Leah’s voice made his chest tighten.

“Yes.” Breath rushed from his lungs, and he stood. “Is everything all right?”

“Yes, I mean no. I mean, Zeke’s gone,” she said, and not with that calm, professorial tone he’d noticed the first time she’d rushed to him apologizing for the muddy water Zeke had splashed on his suit.

“When did he leave?” He strode across the entry and pulled his coat from the closet.

“This morning.” She hesitated, as if trying to control the fear that edged into her voice. “We’re so worried. He has a warm coat and gloves, but it’s freezing outside.”

“I’ll be right there.” He clutched the phone between his shoulder and ear and pulled on his jacket.

“Oh, no,” she stammered. “I didn’t mean to drag you into this. We’ve already called the sheriff. They’re looking for him. I’m going to look for him―”

“Wait until I get there,” he said, and dashed into the garage. After making sure Leah wouldn’t leave until he arrived, he drove down the country roads but kept close to the speed limit.

When he drove up the Rendell Ranch driveway, Leah ran out the front door. No one else was around. Bryg climbed out of the SUV and strode to the porch.

“Is anyone else here?” he asked. He hated seeing the ashen color of her face.

“No, my mother took the other boys to town for a homeschool activity. My dad is out looking for Zeke.” Tight lines pressed into the corners of her eyes. “The boys know Zeke’s gone.”

“I didn’t see him walking along the road when I drove here,” Bryg said.

“I don’t think he’s staying near the main road,” Leah said. “When I checked his computer, I noticed he’d saved satellite maps of paths through fields and back roads. All the maps led to Denver to an area called The Grid. That’s where he grew up.”

Bryg’s breath froze in his lungs. He was all too familiar with The Grid. It had been rough when social services took him from the walkup apartment he’d shared with his mother more than twenty years ago. He didn’t want to imagine what it was like now.

“If he walks all the way there, he’ll freeze to death.” The quiver in Leah’s voice made Bryg’s chest tighten.

“I doubt he’ll walk all the way,” Bryg said.

“You mean, he’ll hitchhike there?” Her eyes widened with alarm, making him wish he hadn’t said anything.

Bryg took her hand, small and warm in his, and together they prayed for Zeke’s safety.

“We called the police department there.” She sounded a little calmer. “But they won’t consider him missing until he’s been gone forty-eight hours and even then, he won’t be a priority. Runaways never are.”

“Then we’ll make sure we find him,” Bryg said and didn’t miss the quick look she gave him. He was glad he sounded calmer than he felt. He opened the SUV door for Leah and helped her climb inside.

He rounded the hood, his chest tightening with each step. Zeke may be a street smart kid, but he couldn’t anticipate every situation he’d encounter. In that neighborhood, there were plenty of people who kept an eye out for a kid in need. Zeke wouldn’t be a match for those predators.

“Engrave him in the palm of your hand, Lord,” Bryg murmured. He climbed into the SUV and drove toward the country road.

“When did you notice he was missing?” he asked Leah.

“When the boys came back from working in the barn this morning.” She stared out the windshield. “He went down there with them, but when they finished, they couldn’t find him. They said they hadn’t noticed him leave, and I think they’re telling the truth. He’s always been an outsider and kept his distance. The other boys still try to include him in conversations and games, but he likes being by himself, so they let him.”

Bryg’s mouth tightened. He remembered a few kids like Zeke at school and in the neighborhood. Growing up in a rough part of town taught him to be aware of his surroundings. Zeke would be like that.

“Do you have a picture of Zeke?” Bryg asked her.

“Yes, on my phone.” She almost looked relieved. “I took it the day we went shopping in town … the day Zeke stepped into that puddle and splattered your clothes with mud.” Her mouth tipped with regret.

“Don’t worry about that. The important thing now is that we find Zeke.” Bryg tapped an address into the car’s navigational system.

“You know where you’re going?” Leah looked at him in surprise.

“I know a few areas in Denver.” And not ones he wanted to discuss. What did the neighborhood look like now? He swallowed hard. He was about to find out.

“I guess I shouldn’t be surprised. I did look you up on the internet,” Leah said. Her eyes were large, and there was a tinge of guilt in her voice.

“You don’t need to apologize.” He glanced at her and hoped his smile made her relax. “Everyone’s on the internet these days. It’s easy to find information about someone.”

“Did you look me up?” There was a lift in her voice, and he felt her stare.

“I was curious,” he said and glanced at her again.

He liked the intensity in her eyes. She wasn’t afraid to confront anyone, a good characteristic for someone who taught college. Some students could be challenging. He had been.

“You graduated from Braxton top in your class,” he said. He remembered everything he’d read about her. He found her interesting after their first meeting and wanted to know more about her. “The college accepted you into the master’s program, and while you worked on your master’s, the college offered you a teaching assistantship. They hired you full time when you worked on your doctorate. You’ve studied abroad, you taught at Cambridge, then you returned to Braxton. You’ve published several award-winning articles and two books that are required reading at a few universities.”

“You have done your homework.” There was a roughness in her voice, and her eyes went wide. Had she never become accustomed to life under the microscope?

“As I do with anyone I work with,” he said.

She opened her mouth, and he knew she’d say he hadn’t known he’d work with her.

“I know. Your parents own the ranch, not you, but before you and your brother graduated high school, your work with the foster children your parents have raised was commended. Your town paper always announced when you and your brother plan to spend the holidays in Mardale, so naturally, I assumed you’d be involved in any decision your parents made regarding the ranch.”

He spent the next half hour guiding the conversation from her life on the ranch to her shock at receiving a scholarship to a private college to teaching at an overseas university. When they drove past the airport, the traffic closed in around them, but Bryg drove the SUV in and out of the slowing cars and never reduced his pace. They neared Denver’s downtown skyline, and he exited to a boulevard that narrowed into a neighborhood filled with brick houses and storefronts that had to be a hundred years old.

He heard Leah’s stomach growl and saw her place a hand to her middle, though she stared out the windshield.

“There’s a diner up the street, nothing fancy, but we can grab a sandwich there.” He looked at her.

Her full lips parted and color rose in her cheeks. The emotions rising in his chest made him catch his breath. If he weren’t driving, if they didn’t need to find Zeke, he’d cup her face and kiss her.

“I’d rather look for Zeke.” She looked out the side window. “I just hope we can find him. There’re so many places a kid can hide or …” Her face whitened.

His heart went rigid. Kids always thought they were invincible. He’d always thought that.

“We’ll find him,” Bryg said, and prayed again. He didn’t want Zeke to spend one night in this place. When he looked at Leah, he saw the question in her eyes, and his mouth set. “We will.” He couldn’t promise, but he’d do everything in his power to do what he said.

He drove the car down a narrow street crowded with tiny houses. Jig’s Corner Store, a place where Bryg used to hang out, stood next to the sidewalk. Bryg wondered if Jig still ran the store, or if he were still alive. He’d be old if he were. The store’s display windows and glass door were covered with wrought iron bars. Next to it stood a building with plywood covering the windows. He felt Leah stiffen and wished he hadn’t brought her here. She grew up in Mardale and now lived in a college town, a far cry from this rough place.

The streets were almost empty. Few people walked along the sidewalk. Fewer cars drove down the street. Bryg found a parking place in front of Jig’s and squeezed into the tight space.

“Can you pull up that picture of Zeke on your phone?” he asked. “I’ll see if anyone in there remembers seeing him.”

“I’ll go with you,” she said, her hand on the door.

“It’s better if you wait here.” He looked straight at her.

“Zeke is my responsibility. I need to know what’s going on,” she said, her gaze intense.

“You will know everything. It would be easier for me to get information if I go in there alone.” When she opened her mouth to object, he said, “Trust me. I know these people.”

That seemed to catch her off-guard, and for a moment she kept very still.

“All right,” she said, and lifted her chin. “But if you’re not back in five minutes, I’m coming in.”

His chest squeezed at the determination in her eyes. “I’ll be back in five minutes.” When she looked at him hard, he said, “I promise.”

He expected an argument, but slowly her hand slid from the handle.

She pulled her phone from her purse and tapped the screen. “What’s your phone number? I’ll text you this picture.”

He gave it to her, and she typed it in. A moment later, the notification sounded on his phone. He looked at the picture, at the boy who didn’t smile and whose eyes were filled with the pain Bryg had seen many times during his years in the Grid.

“Thanks,” he murmured and stepped out of the car.

Inside the store, Bryg gave a start when he saw Jig sitting on a stool behind the counter. His hair was almost completely gray and more lines edged into his face, but other than that, the store owner looked the same.

Refrigerated cases lined the walls of the store that was smaller than most bedrooms. The shelves behind Jig were filled with liquor and cigarette cartons.

“I know you,” the old man said, his keen eyes widening.

“Hey, Jig, it’s been awhile. How’ve you been?” Bryg extended his hand.

“Not bad. Bryg, isn’t it?”

“That’s right,” Bryg said. Had Jig seen him on the news?

“What can I get you?” The man shook his hand and started to stand, but Bryg waved him back to his seat.

“I’ll just grab some sodas and chips.” Bryg picked out the items and set them on the counter. Jig watched him when he pulled out his wallet and then his phone. He tipped the phone’s screen, still showing Zeke’s picture, toward Jig. “Have you seen this kid?”

“Yes.” Jig lifted his gaze to Bryg. “What’s he done?”

“Nothing. I’m here to take him home.”

“Are you a cop?”

“No,” Bryg laughed softly. Apparently, Jig hadn’t seen him on the news. “I just want to make sure he’s all right. He has a nice home out on the plains. I want to make sure he gets back there safe and sound.”

“You just missed him,” Jig said, and rang up Bryg’s purchases. He slipped the sodas and snacks into a bag and set it on the counter. “He came in. I asked him if I could help him, but he didn’t answer. And he didn’t buy anything. He just walked out of the store and headed toward Park Avenue.”

Zeke didn’t buy anything, because he didn’t have any money. Bryg’s throat closed. The poor kid had to be starving.

“Did he say where he was going?” Bryg asked, though he knew the answer. Zeke didn’t say anything.

“Didn’t tell me a thing.” Jig lifted his eyebrows.

“Thanks,” Bryg said, and threw a few bills on the counter. He picked up the bag and turned away.

“What about your change?” Jig called after him.

“Keep it.” Bryg looked over his shoulder at the man.

“Thanks.” Jig smiled. “And remember your friends. You know we’ll always be here.”

Bryg tipped the corner of his mouth at him. Maybe Jig remembered him after all. He rushed out of the store and climbed into the SUV.

“Jig saw Zeke.” Bryg tried to sound calm, but knew he’d failed when he felt Leah stiffen.

“When?” Leah’s voice was strained. She took the bag from him and set it on her lap. “Where?”

“Just a few minutes ago.” Bryg started the SUV and pulled away from the curb. “He went into Jig’s store but didn’t buy anything.”

“Poor kid,” Leah said weakly.

“When we find him, we’ll give him the sodas and chips I just bought. You can help yourself,” Bryg said. He hoped his smile would reassure her. He gave her hand a quick squeeze.

“Thank you for doing that. I’m not hungry, but Zeke has to be starving,” Leah said on an exhaled breath. Her slim fingers tightened around the sack.

Bryg released a slow breath. Hungry and other things. He had to make sure he and Leah found Zeke before someone else did.

He cruised down one street, then turned onto another. When he’d see people walking down the street, he’d stop the SUV and jump out, show them Zeke’s picture and ask if they’d seen him. Some had. Some hadn’t.

Bryg’s frustration mounted. Where could Zeke have gone? The sun moved across the sky, which heightened Bryg’s concern. He didn’t want Zeke spending the night in this neighborhood.

The tension he felt from Leah gripped his own chest. He’d promised her they’d find Zeke, but where would the kid go?

And then he knew. The rec center. Kids in the area always went there. He’d often hung out there when his mother hadn’t paid the rent, and the landlord locked him out of the apartment.

“I know where to find him,” Bryg said. He hoped he was right. He didn’t want to disappoint Leah, but he had to take a chance. His life had always been about taking chances.

“Where?” Leah asked. Hesitant hope filled her voice.

“A place where the kids always liked to hang out.” Bryg guided the SUV around a corner.

Ahead, a lone form wearing slacks and a black jacket sauntered down the sidewalk.

“I think we made this too hard.” Bryg slowed the car. Leah looked at him, then her gaze followed his. He heard her soft gasp and knew she’d recognized the clothes.

Bryg spotted a parking space along the street and squeezed the SUV next to the curb.

Leah reached for the door handle.

“Let me talk to him,” Bryg said, his voice low and firm.

“I’m responsible for him,” Leah said, and Bryg saw the heat of an argument rising in her face while she struggled to stay calm. “I accepted that you would talk to Jig alone, because you knew him. I know Zeke.”

“You’re right. You do,” he said and looked into her eyes. “When I told you I’d looked up your background on the internet, you never said if you’d looked up information about me.” He stared straight at her.

Her gaze dropped, and he had his answer. “Then you know I spent the first twelve years of my life in The Grid.”

Even someone who grew up on an eastern Colorado ranch would have an idea of what life in The Grid had been like. She taught English literature and would’ve studied the famous works that revealed the desperate lives of the underclass.

Every starry eyed reporter that had interviewed Bryg always asked about his life in The Grid as if there were something romantic about growing up in the worst Denver neighborhood. The only good thing about his life in The Grid was that it had placed him in the Moores’ foster home.

“Can you just give me a couple of minutes with him?” Bryg asked her.

He saw the swallow slide down the slender column of her throat and understood her struggle. She blamed herself for Zeke leaving, but she didn’t realize Zeke needed something familiar. Now that he had it, he may have realized it wasn’t as he remembered.

Leah’s mouth worked. She pressed her full lips into a flat line and nodded. Bryg wrapped his hand around hers, felt the warmth and softness of her skin, and wished he could do so much more.

He climbed out of the car, looked up and down the street. Hands in his pockets, he followed Zeke, but felt Leah’s concerned stare as if she touched him. He just wanted her trust, though he had a feeling even if he won her trust with his handling of Zeke, he’d have to work harder to earn her trust in an area that was becoming surprisingly important to him. Would he succeed? He looked after Zeke. First things first.

Zeke’s pace was slow, and he kept his head down. Had he tried to find his friends but couldn’t? Even a loner like Zeke would have one friend.

Bryg was a few feet behind Zeke, when the teen glanced over his shoulder. Shock, then mistrust, wavered in the teen’s eyes, and Bryg expected him to burst into a run. Bryg looked closer. Zeke’s eyes were red. The threat of hot tears shone in the kid’s dark eyes.

“Hey,” Bryg said, his throat filling with the emotion he saw in Zeke’s face.

The corner of Zeke’s mouth twitched, but he said nothing. He watched Bryg.

“Let’s go back to the ranch.” Bryg tipped his head as if the ranch were just down the street.

Zeke didn’t move. He looked past Bryg to the SUV.

Bryg looked over his shoulder and saw Leah had remained inside, though her stare was firmly on Zeke.

“You brought her.” Zeke gave a husky laugh.

“She’s worried about you. Everyone is,” Bryg said.

“How d’you know where to find me?” Zeke gave him a curious look.

“I grew up here,” Bryg said. When Zeke’s eyes widened, Bryg gave a dry laugh. “I’ll tell you about it someday. How’d you get here so fast?”

“A bunch of kids in a pickup gave me a ride.”

Bryg nodded, then laid a hand on Zeke’s shoulder and turned him toward the SUV.

Zeke stiffened and Bryg waited for the argument―that Zeke didn’t want to go back. That he wanted to stay in The Grid. This was where he belonged.

“They said I smelled funny. That I smelled like a ranch.” Zeke was shaking. The threat of tears climbed into his voice.

“Different maybe, but not funny.” Bryg wished Zeke realized his old friends probably didn’t know what a ranch smelled like.

He had a feeling Zeke’s friends probably said a few other things. What Zeke didn’t understand was that his friends were probably jealous. His clothes were different, and maybe he smelled different, but it would’ve been the scent of the country, and not the inner city.

A tear rolled down Zeke’s cheek. He uttered an oath and wiped it away.

“It’s okay,” Bryg said, his voice rough.

Zeke was a kid who kept a lot inside. He needed to let go―of his emotions and of The Grid.

The boy rolled his eyes and looked away, a determined effort to keep from crying.

Bryg understood. He used to think crying was a sign of weakness. Now he knew―it took strength to cry.

“You hungry?” Bryg asked him.

Zeke looked surprised, then dropped his gaze. “Yeah.”

“Let’s get something to eat.” Bryg wrapped his arm around Zeke’s shoulder and guided him to the SUV. “I’ve got a few snacks in the car, but we’ll stop at a restaurant and get you some real food.”

When they approached the SUV, Leah climbed out. Her face was pale, but her full lips spread into a smile that made Bryg’s heart rise in his chest. When he saw the sheen in her eyes, his throat dried.

“Hi, Zeke,” she said when he and Bryg were a few feet away from her. Her voice almost sounded normal.

“Hi.” Zeke gave her a tentative smile, as if expecting more than just a greeting.

“I told him we’d get something to eat,” Bryg said. He opened the SUV’s back door and helped Zeke inside.

Leah nodded and climbed into the car. She leaned over the back of the seat and handed the bag with snacks to Zeke. Bryg slid into the driver’s seat and started the engine. He felt a stare and looked at the row of houses set back from the sidewalk. He glanced at the homes, all with tiny front porches. All with the shades pulled down tight. Movement on the second floor of one house caught his attention, and he wondered who watched. One of Zeke’s friends? The one who told Zeke he smelled like a ranch?

The one who wished he smelled like a ranch?

Bryg pulled away from the curb. If that was what the kid wanted, Bryg hoped it would happen.

The sense of relief flooding Bryg now was almost his undoing. He prayed for the kid who had hurt Zeke, and he murmured a prayer of thanks.

He and Leah had found Zeke. He glanced into the rearview mirror and caught Zeke’s profile as he stared at the tiny brick houses they passed. His features had relaxed, and it was the first time Bryg had looked into his young face and not seen resentment.

Tension drained out of Bryg’s chest when they reached the boulevard and headed toward the highway. His throat felt raw as he remembered how he’d fought the social service workers the day they’d dragged him out of the studio apartment he’d shared with his mother.

She was crying, too, and said she’d visit him, but she never did. Was that Zeke’s story? He hadn’t gone to a house or an apartment. Because he didn’t have one to go to? Did he have a family? Were they still alive?

Bryg glanced at Leah and breathed a little easier when he saw the lines around her mouth and eyes had eased.

Reaching over, he squeezed her hand. She looked at him, but didn’t seem surprised. She laid a hand over his and tightened her slender fingers around his. He felt her warmth, felt the smoothness of her skin. Briefly, he wondered if Zeke noticed this exchange between Bryg and Leah, but he didn’t care.

He didn’t want to release Leah, but slowly he slid his hand away from hers. The longing he felt inside made him want to wrap her in his arms and hold her close, inhale the fragrance of her skin that made him long for something more.

And in that moment, he knew she was the woman he wanted to hold for a very long time.